Percentage of population to have had Covid?

[gardenhelpneeded]

What’s the estimated proportion to have had Covid? I remember it being only about 10% last time I saw the statistic. I’d be interested to see that updated number now. Here in Scotland currently about 1 in 10 have it apparently. I’ve still avoided it which seems a miracle as I’m a teacher with three teenagers.

I'm beyond caring now.

@Jonny1265 helpful! Feel free to scroll on by

Everyone I know has had it. Everyone. No one apart from me reported their test result, so the government stats can’t possibly be correct.

One reason cases are climbing now is that people who want summer holidays abroad and who have got covid and might still tes positive at the airport have realised they need a ‘certificate of recovery’ to fly and so they’re officially registering their positive cases when people weren’t before.

Humans. We always make things more complicated 🤣🤦‍♀️

I was wondering this. I've never known so many people getting poorly with it.

It’s rife here. I’d say anecdotally about half of the people I know have (knowingly) had it.

I've never known so many people have it at once as last couple of weeks.

I think most people I know have had it this last 6 months.

Also remember lots will have had it asymptomatically before we tested so much

I haven't had it yet but I know several people who haven't had it either even though their family members have had it.
Myself tested negative on pcr and lfts when Dh and dc had delta. No symptoms either.

I think I made it because testing stops tomorrow. No covid so far and in future I will only have colds it seems.

The dashboard says about a third of the population. Last realistic estimate I saw was about half but that was a few weeks ago. Of people I know it's about 75% but the vast majority of them have school age children which I suspect may make them a not entirely representative sample.

How can any estimate be even remotely reliable when reporting is so varied?

I think you can easily double or treble the amount of daily cases. All 4 of us here had covid recently, only myself reported one out of the 4 of us.

Apparently one in 13 people in England currently have Covid. So that's probably several in the supermarket, several on the bus, tube, train, in the office, at school, in the restaurant etc etc.

In other words, it's everywhere. Most people won't even be aware of having it though.

For those saying: how can the stats be accurate when no one is reporting their lateral flow results - the stats aren’t based on lateral flow reports for exactly that reason. The stats are based on the ONS survey, which regularly tests a large sample of people (even asymptomatic) and then estimates overall population prevalence.

It’s like the statisticians who work on this stuff have actually spend 30 seconds thinking about how best to estimate case numbers and why not to use self-reported lateral flow results!

Thanks @Wigeon I agree and remember reading something similar (but had forgotten)

Only one family member of mine has had it! And I'm talking large extended family too. I know a few people who have had it, friends through social media etc. butt it never feels like lots to me!

@Mindymomo

I think you can easily double or treble the amount of daily cases. All 4 of us here had covid recently, only myself reported one out of the 4 of us.

This is the tragic part, we can only guess that the numbers are much higher than reported.

Out of my family, siblings, in laws etc only four out of ten have had it. I think it’s going to really vary by age but I know lots of people of school age children who haven’t had it yet.

Sorry, just a personal experience!

But we, a family of 5, have gone all this time without getting covid, all down with it in the last couple of weeks.

It can't keep being 1 in 12 or whatever it is on and off without it being very high percentages of population having had it now surely?

This is the tragic part, we can only guess that the numbers are much higher than reported.
The ONS survey is quite accurate, its not based on self reporting.

Most people I know have had it 2 or 3 times but I'm a teacher so probably a skewed experience

Yup many school staff are on their second bout since January.

I read that 1 in 3 of the population had it in the Christmas wave, so if you add in the current wave as well that must be the vast majority?

I think a lot of people are getting it more than once though (children, NHS workers, teachers etc) which will skew the data. Personally I haven't tested positive yet, though I suspect I had it in Feb 2020 and my son had it recently. My parents haven't, but they've completely changed their lives to avoid it. And I know one other family with a child who haven't had it. That's it.

We've all had it this year. I've had it twice. None of us reported it.

OP here. I’m a high school teacher and out of our department of 8, only 2 have (knowingly) had it. Scotland.

@DockOTheBay

This is the tragic part, we can only guess that the numbers are much higher than reported. The ONS survey is quite accurate, its not based on self reporting.

Thank you, @DockOTheBay indeed you are correct. I wrote a fly by post and was wrong in my thinking.

I agree that the ONS is reliable in their data.

“Covid has hit an all-time high across the UK, with almost 5 million people – one in 13 of the population – estimated to have the virus, according to the most recent official data, prompting experts to call for the return of free testing.

The figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) came on the day the government ended free rapid tests for most people in England and as tens of thousands of people were hoping to embark on Easter holidays. Many will have to pay for a test to find out if they are infected, whether they are symptomatic or not.“

So the ONS says 1 in 13 of the UK population, an all-time high.